The development of the global merchant fleet is affected by a very broad range of interwoven supply and demand factors, including shipping and commodity cycles, investor sentiment, regulatory concerns, yard capacity and so on. Another factor is shore-side infrastructure projects, which can be tricky to disentangle from the wider web, though this influence is a little clearer on, for example, the LNG carrier sector… When looking at supply and demand factors in shipping, the old adage about the chicken, the egg and their relative pedigree often springs to mind. In the case of LNG though, it coul
By the late 1800s, the shipping industry had been transformed by the introduction of steam power and iron ships. Coal and grain were two of the most important cargoes, alongside timber, sugar, cotton and tea. While technology, the sheer scale of the business, and the global cargo mix, have of course all changed since then, dry bulk cargoes have retained a position at the heart of global seaborne trade. In 2016, seaborne dry bulk trade totalled 4.9 billion tonnes. That’s equal to 44% of world seaborne trade, by far the highest proportion of any cargo group, followed by oil with a 27% share. Fro
The Wall Street Crash in 1929 marked the onset of the Great Depression in the US. Times were tough, but jazz music, which had taken off in the 1920s, endured and evolved into the era of big bands and swing music now synonymous with the 1930s. The crude tanker sector is having a tricky time of its own at present, but over the last decade, crude trade patterns have seen their own evolutionary swing… A lot of things can happen in a decade. The economic gloom of the early 1930s in the US marked a sharp change from the Roaring Twenties, whilst in the music world, traditional New Orleans jazz began
It is over a year now since the opening of the new, expanded locks at the Panama Canal. The new locks have had a significant impact on a number of areas of shipping, including the gas carrier sector, but the main focus of the project in Panama was always the container trade, and the Asia-US East Coast route in particular. In that regard, how do things look a little over one year on? The new locks at the Panama Canal opened for transit on 26th June 2016, and the impact on the box shipping sector has been largely in line with expectations. The key area of impact was always going to be the Tran
The ordering boom in 2006-08 landed the crude tanker market with near record deliveries and robust fleet growth in the subsequent years. A return to strong contracting in 2014-15 has led to a surge in delivery volumes of crude tankers. In 2017, crude tanker deliveries are expected to top 25m dwt, breaking records in the process, and continuing their role as a key feature of market dynamics this year. Following the ordering boom in 2006-08, crude tanker deliveries in the subsequent four years surged to average over 28m dwt p.a., supporting crude fleet expansion of 5% p.a. on average. However, a
In last year’s half year shipping report, we reported on an industry that “must do better”. With the ClarkSea Index averaging $10,040 per day in the first half (up 2% y-o-y but still 14% below trend since the financial crisis) there are still many subjects (sectors) struggling for good grades as our Graph of the Week shows. But are there some that are showing a bit more potential? A year on from record lows, bulker earnings remain below trend (defined as the average since the financial crisis) but are showing signs of improvement. Capesize spot earnings moved from an average of $4,972/day in 1
Mr. Stefan Matz, a director of international business in Hamburg Business Development Corporation, visited Korea on 28th Nov. to promote Hamburg economic activities. It is 22 years since he was in Korea in 1994. The Shippers' Journal(BVL Korea, MediaKN) met Mr. Matz in KGCCI office to ask a few questions regarding his activities. This time Mr. Christopher Zimmer, a Hamburg ambassador and also a general manager Korea of Lufthansa airlines, sit in company. Q.Could you introduce all about Hamburg Business Development Corporation? Your history, what are you doing, and so on. Yes, thank you for tha